TAGS: Metal Replacement Part Design & Manufacturing Automotive
Covestro’s thermally conductive (TC) polycarbonate has now been used to mold an automotive LED fog lamp housing. This component, used in a light truck by a major OEM, was named a finalist in the 49th Annual SPE Automotive Innovation Awards Competition in the Materials category.
Light-weight PC to Replace Aluminum
With an increased focus on light-weighting, the OEM and supplier turned to Makrolon® TC8030 polycarbonate from Covestro to improve the truck’s fog lamp housing. This material, which is injection molded, delivers several improvements when compared to the die-cast aluminum material previously used, including:
- More than 40% weight savings
- Over 10% reduction in component count resulting from design integration
- 20% cost reduction for full lamp assembly
- 30 lumen increase due to improved heat management for LED performance
Variety of Structural Benefits
Makrolon® TC8030 polycarbonate also offers a variety of structural benefits, such as high stiffness, great high-temperature fatigue life and good creep resistance when compared to traditional materials. Additionally, once the LED board is removed, the polycarbonate housing can be easily recycled.
Additional advantages of polycarbonate include:
- High thermal conductivity for outstanding heat management
- Excellent dimensional stability
- Electrical conductivity to dissipate electrostatic charges
- Low EMI shielding for electronic integration
“
As the automotive industry continues to evolve, it’s important for materials to keep pace,” said Michael George, automotive lighting segment manager, Covestro LLC. “
This application of a thermally conductive polycarbonate in a fog lamp housing opens the door to new possibilities, such as more flexible heat sink designs, integrated electronics, and the use of lamp housings for thermal management.”
The housing’s mechanical design is also unique. For example, increased thickness on the inside of the housing enables constant contact with the PCB board for better heat dissipation.
Source: Covestro